New Zealand Dialect Bible

There have been many attempts over the years to put the Bible into the common speech of the local people. The Cotton Patch Version was used in my Greek class in college to remind us that sometimes it is important to make the word pictures of the Bible fit the word pictures of its readers (and as a warning that sometimes it just doesn't work and you have to stick with the original in its purest form). Now, a new version is coming out that attempts to give Jesus's words a more Kiwi flavor.

"I'm hacked off with your attitude," [Jesus] told his mates. "Let the wee tykes come to me - believe it or not, kids like these are going to be right at the heart of God's great outfit." ...The Kiwi Bible is sometimes amusing but isn't meant to be a parody. Grantham's real inspiration is evangelical: he wants people who don't know the Bible to get a taste of it so that they can be introduced to Jesus and be encouraged to read more of the Bible.
He offers the most basic version of the gospel story, Mark, and the first third of Acts through to the conversion of Saul. It's a good story with a candy covering: the candy is the slang and some reimagining that goes along with it.
The reimagining can be very effective. The parable of the sower now has some seed landing on the patio; some on the edge of the path; some getting "confused with the weed department, and of course the weeds were better growers - which is why they're called weeds"; and some landing in rich soil.
The pay-off comes with the interpretation: "the guy flinging the seeds around" is like someone with good news to tell at a party. "The ones on the patio -- well, they've scarcely heard the news when someone comes out and offers them another drink, and wham, the news is gone."

Don't get me wrong. Such versions of scripture need to be taken with a healthy dose of salt. But they are useful for outreach and sometimes to get a new perspective on a well-known piece of scripture. Still, I think we'll stick with the NIV for BIble Quizzing!